Egg Drop Soup

We’re back again with another Chinese recipe to prove to you that you absolutely CAN make Chinese food at home! Try it! This recipe has seven ingredients, and one of them is water. You can totally do this. According to the internet Egg Drop Soup can sometimes go by “Egg Flower Soup,” and while none of us have ever heard it called that, for Chef Jeff’s rendition of it we could totally see how people could think that- our eggs were delicately swirled in and left gorgeous ribbons in our soup that was reminiscent of some gorgeous, submerged hibiscus petals artfully drifting in a sea of umm… chicken stock.

Speaking of chicken stock, this recipe came to us fresh off the heels of our video being made on “How to Make Your Own Stock,” so if you made a roast chicken this weekend and always feel guilty with throwing out your scraps after the last of the sandwiches have been made HELLO! Make some stock! And then throw some eggs in it! You know what they say, “two birds, one soup”.

Short of the incorporation of yet another slurry we’ve made of Arrowroot Powder and water, this soup is technically super simple. You’ll simmer your chicken stock, just barely cook your sliced mushrooms, add your slurry (being careful to not go overboard- you’re looking for a slightly thicker soup, not a stew that resembles gravy) season with your Jiao Yan (a seasoning blend that is sea salt and super zippy Sichuan Pepper), then drizzle in your LIGHTLY beaten egg- if you overbeat it, Jeff does warn it might get a little tough. We garnished with some fresh chopped scallions and were left with a heavenly egg drop soup that had just enough crunch from the green onions.

How could you bulk up this soup? In addition to mushrooms, you might choose to add some shredded carrots, or some other vegetables that aren’t overly cruciferous and pungent. Or DO use some cruciferous vegetables! It’s your soup! The “less is more” mentality has always applied to egg drop soup so that the very delicate egg flavor has enough room to shine, but if that’s not how you operate your kitchen, feel free to drop in whatever other ingredients you think deserve to share the spotlight… Tofu? Five Spice Powder? Some leftover shrimp from last week? Don’t be afraid to customize your soup and all your recipes to the flavors that are available and appealing to you, but do make sure to consider the needed cook time for all your newly invited ingredients- and you’ll definitely want to add your eggs until the last few minutes to avoid overcooking.